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Listening to the drip, over and over again, Zander decided it was time to put an end to it. Late nights were not his strong suit, so the frustration of having to get out of bed because of a stupid leaky faucet did not bode well for getting a good nights sleep."Why now?"The meeting in the morning was too important to ruin and lack of sleep was not an excuse. After pulling on the handle, and a count of fifteen, he was headed back to bed. But right when he's about to lay down, a creak in the floor spins him around. His heart in his throat, he scans the room.

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The game is simple. You write the next part, keeping it to a paragraph or two, and then pass the baton to the next writer.

I thought it would be a fun excercise to get to know each other, and our writing styles, better. If this isn't the right forum, let me know and I'll start it where it fits.

“Holy Guacamole!” Zander twisted knuckles into his eyes trying to erase what he saw, or was it a hallucination? A forty pound rat with fangs? Somebody must have slipped something into that bowl of chili con carne y frijoles at Pepito’s. Or, it’s the loony tune farm for me, he thought.

Feigning bravery, he lifted a nine iron from the golf bag against the wall and stepped forward growling, “Scram!”

Proverbs 16:3 Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established. (NKJ)

The rat examined the point of one of his long claws. "Typical," he said. "You're facing a rat the size of a german shepherd, which is unheard of by your science, and you're more concerned that I both talk, and know the difference between a nine iron and a five iron."

"Well, then," Zander said, feeling a lit of his confidence returning to him, since the rat had yet to make an aggressive move. "What should I be concerned about?"

The rat smiled (which was disturbing in itself with his huge fangs). "You should be concerned by what's behind you."

“It is the artist who realizes that there is a supreme force above him and works gladly away as a small apprentice under God's heaven.” ~ Alexandr Solzhenitsyn

Zander whipped around, nine iron at the ready. As he did so, his internal alarm system screamed in his head "Fool! Rats are intelligent! It's the oldest trick in the book!" A minute later, Zander discovered his alarm, as usual, was dead on.

The rat was suddenly behind him, stretching up on its hind legs. The clawed front paws rested on Zander's shoulders, and the furry snout rested close to his ear. "See?" said the rat, lifting one claw to point at a strange shimmering in the dark room. "The portal has been shifting around the room, and had ended up behind you. You wouldn't have wanted to fall backwards through it."

"I... guess not," Zander said.

"Falling forward is much better," the rat said, and pushed off the floor with his legs. He held tight to Zander's back as they fell through the shimmering portal together.

“It is the artist who realizes that there is a supreme force above him and works gladly away as a small apprentice under God's heaven.” ~ Alexandr Solzhenitsyn

"Hello, Thomas, how are you?" Antonio seemed quite at ease with the cat. A wide grin spread over the cat's face. "I'm fine, Antonio. Who's the two-legs you have with you?" Antonio turned to Zander. "This is Thomas Felinius, lord of Purrsia, the kingdom next to mine. We signed a peace treaty with his people, and actually trade with them. Thomas," he said, turning back to the cat, "This is Zander, a human from Earth, and he fell through the portal just now. I'm showing him around." Thomas' voice, Zander noted, was accented with a purr. "Welcome to Maltair, Zander. I hope you'll find time to visit Purrsia as well." Zander collected himself and replied, "Thank you, Thomas, I hope to do so."

"Fell?" said Zander, suddenly realizing what had been said. "I was pushed!"

Antonio twitched his nose, and then smoothed back an errant tuft of fur. "Semantics," he said.

"I was pushed by you," Zander clarified.

Thomas settled down, tucking his massive front paws under his chest, and watched the exchange.

"Immaterial," Antonio said. "It was inevitable that you were going through the portal. I just made sure that when you did, you landed here, in my kingdom, instead of in the Chilopod Kingdom. Trust me - you would NOT have wanted to land there."

"Chilopod?" Zander asked.

"Centipedes," Thomas replied, and then shook his head as though he'd just bitten into something bitter.

“It is the artist who realizes that there is a supreme force above him and works gladly away as a small apprentice under God's heaven.” ~ Alexandr Solzhenitsyn

A soft whoosh sounded, followed by a screech like someone stepped on a cat's tail. A lilac-point Siamese on some kind of hover-sled hung in the air nearby. "Your Excellency!" gasped its furry rider, "Barkivania is attacking! The centipedes have joined forces with them, and are headed this way!" With that, the cat fell from the hover-sled, facedown in the snow. Zander noticed a large arrow in the cat's back. Thomas cried, "Oh, no! This means war! Who let the dogs out, and why are they joining forces with the centipedes?"Antonio said, "I'll activate my forces and join you. But first, I must see to the safety of my guest." The next thing Zander knew, he and Antonio were flying over the snow in the hover-sled, as Thomas screamed to the sky, "You will be avenged, Max! Your wife and kittens will be comforted...." the rest of his words disappeared as the sled flew over the ridge to Antonio's manor.

"Maybe they're designed differently than the ones on Earth," offered Zander. "Completely possible," said Antonio. "Here we are. You'll meet my lovely wife and children, and have a tour of the manor while I'm leading my troops. Whatever you do, if someone tells you to do something, do it. If they tell you not to do something, don't do it. Things are different here, so don't be a know-it-all and disobey. Got it?" Zander nodded. "Got it."

The entrance to the hover-sled bay suddenly yawned before them, then snapped shut like a trap after their entry. No sooner had an attendant taken possession of the hover-sled, Antonio called out , "Assemble the troops! The dogs and centipedes are attacking! Sound the alarm!" Zander and Antonio got off the sled and headed for a nearby doorway, Antonio in the lead.